Social Psychology and Politics Sydney Symposium of Social Psychology Series

Social psychology and politics are intricately related, and understanding how humans manage power and govern themselves is one of the key issues in psychology. This volume surveys the latest theoretical and empirical work on the social psychology of politics, featuring cutting-edge research from a stellar group of international researchers.

It is organized into four main sections that deal with political attitudes and values; political communication and perceptions; social cognitive processes in political decisions; and the politics of intergroup behavior and social identity. The contributions address such exciting questions as how do political attitudes and values develop and change? What role do emotions and moral values play in political behavior? How do political messages and the media influence political perceptions? What are the psychological requirements of effective democratic decision making, and why do democracies sometimes fail? How can intergroup harmony be developed, and what is the role of social identity in political processes?

As such, this volume integrates the role of cognitive, affective, social and cultural influences on political perception and behavior, offering an overview of the psychological mechanisms underlying political processes. It provides essential reading for teachers, students, researchers and practitioners in areas related to power, social influence and political behavior.

The Social Psychology of Politics: Homo Politicus Revisited, J.P.Forgas, K.Fiedler, W.D. Crano. I. Political Attitudes and Values. Structure and Change of Complex Political Attitudes, W.D. Crano, E. Lyrintzis. Sacred Values and Political Life, J.Ginges. Political Orientation and Moral Conviction: A Conservative Advantage or an Equal Opportunity Motivator of Political Engagement? L. J. Skitka, G.S. Morgan, D. Wisneski. Fox and Not-Fox Television News Impact on Opinions on Global Warming: Selective Exposure, Not Motivated Reasoning, J.Krosnick, B.MacInnis. The Politics of Social Psychological Science: Distortions in the Social Psychology of Liberalism and Conservatism, L.Jussim, J.T. Crawford, S.M. Anglin, S. Stevens. II. Political Perception and Communication. The Perception of Politicians’ Morality: Attacks and Defences, P. Catellani, M.Bertolotti. The Persuasive Power of Political Metaphors, M.J.Landau, L.A.Keefer. It's All in the Face: Facial Appearance, Political Ideology and Voters' Perceptions, M.Wänke. Explaining the Influence of Disgust on Political Judgment: A Disease-avoidance Account, D.A. Pizarro, Y.Inbar. Intergroup Emotions and Political Violence: The ANCODI Hypothesis, M.G. Frank, D.Matsumoto, H.C. Hwang. III. Social Cognition and Democracy. The Tragedy of Democratic Decision Making, K.Fiedler, J.Hofferbert, F.Woellert, T.Krüger, A.Koch. From Choice to Gridlock: Dynamic Bases of Constructive versus Dysfunctional Political Process, Robin R. Vallacher. Politics and Psychology: A View From A Social Dilemma Perspective, P.A.M. van Lange. Politics and the Psychology of Power: Multi-level Dynamics in the (Im)Balances of Human Needs and Survival, F.Pratto, F.B.Zeineddine. Social Cognition and Democracy: An Eastern European Case Study, J.P.Forgas, L.Kelemen, L.Janos. IV. The Politics of Identity and Intergroup Relations. Inclusive Identity and the Psychology of Political Change, J.F.Dovidio, T.Saguy, E.G.Ufkes, D.Scheepers, S.L. Gaertner. Social Instability and Identity-Uncertainty: Fertile Ground for Political Extremism, M.A. Hogg. The American Color Line and Black Exceptionalism, D.O. Sears. The Social Psychology of Social (Dis)harmony: Implications for Political Leaders and Public Policy, L.Batalha, E.Subasic.